There's a new bill that has been filed on behalf of our furry friends. On Dec. 2, Republican State Rep. Jared Patterson of Frisco, Texas filed HB 870. It would allow Texas to say no to puppy mill sales statewide.

BIG MONEY IN PET SALES

Retail pet stores make large profits off of these unhealthy puppy mill animals. So if this bill gets passed, stores across the state of Texas would no longer be allowed to sell puppies or kittens from out-of-state puppy mills. This bill is supposed to help animals, and put an end to pet stores acquiring and selling out-of-state puppy mill animals. The desire is to put puppy mills out of business altogether.

 WILL THIS PUT AN END TO PUPPY MILL PET TRAFFICKING IN TEXAS?

With not being able to get their animals from pet mills, HB 870 is requiring that pet stores sell only healthy animals from shelters or rescues. This would help protect the animals and also those purchasing them.

Similar laws have already been enacted in several cities across Texas. So why not make it statewide right?

For example, Dallas, Houston and New Braunfels all have similar ordinances like HB 870 on the books. Stacy Sutton Kerby, Director of Government Relations at the Texas Humane Legislation Network says, "all Texans deserve to be protected from buying sick, infected puppies." I definitely agree with that. Especially with how much pet owners are paying for these animals.

HEALTHY AND ADOPTABLE

This policy will bring relief to animal shelters that are having to care for an overwhelming number of healthy and adoptable pets. "Out-of-state puppy mills store puppies in poor conditions, take them away from their moms too soon, and truck them hundreds of thousands of miles across the country to be sold in retail pet stores," said Representative Patterson.

THOUGHTS?

The good news is, the support for this policy continues to grow. "Texans are huge animal lovers and do not endorse puppy mill cruelty, and halting the puppy mill pipeline to our state reflects these values," concluded Kerby.

What say you? Do you support this bill being passed, enacted, and enforced? Do you have an experience with a puppy mill pup? Download our free app, send me a message and share your experience with me. Until the next one, K-Lew out!

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LOOK: Here are the pets banned in each state

Because the regulation of exotic animals is left to states, some organizations, including The Humane Society of the United States, advocate for federal, standardized legislation that would ban owning large cats, bears, primates, and large poisonous snakes as pets.

Read on to see which pets are banned in your home state, as well as across the nation.